Exclusivity
by Librarian7
Summary: This story picks up directly following the events of "Within the Lonely Reaches of the Night," and carries the story of freshie Lucky forward as her relationships with Mick and especially Josef, evolve.
1. Chapter 1

Exclusivity

This work of fiction is rated R for violence, language, and adult situations (if not in this chapter, in others). You've been warned.

Disclaimer:  
The characters from Moonlight are copyrighted by CBS, and no infringement is intended.

This work follows the events of "Within the Empty Reaches of the Night," and you might want to read that one first, if you haven't. Yes, it's another Freshie Fic.

Exclusivity

Chapter 1

For the first day or two after the attack, Lucky had barely opened her door. After calling work, and telling them she had a raging case of the flu and would be out all week, she'd turned off her phone, shut down her computer, and hidden. She closed the curtains, turned on no lights, no television after dark. At first, she was able to keep her mind in a comfortable white fuzz, no thoughts, no memories. It was all she could do to make herself eat and drink a little, but somewhere underneath the haze, she knew she would survive this, and she knew her body needed basic sustenance. Later, she thought she recalled sleeping a lot, but she was never sure about that. She suspected she might have spent just as much time staring off into space. A time or two, she thought she might have been dimly aware of someone else in the apartment, but for some reason, if this was true, she felt no fear of whoever it was. If it was someone wanting to kill her, then he could kill her and be done with it. If not, then it made no difference to her. She didn't care.

On the third or fourth day after the attack, she woke up, feeling calmer and more herself than she had for days, shrugged on an old bathrobe, and came out into the living room. Josef was sitting on the couch, waiting with that patience she'd noticed before. He often appeared hyper, talking too fast, moving too fast, but she'd also seen him go as still and watchful as leopard waiting for passing prey. He was watching the bedroom door as she came through. Of course, she thought, he knew I was moving. Lucky tried not to let anything—surprise, pleasure, fear—show on her face. She was feeling an odd mixture of

all three. She wasn't sure what she ought to be feeling—fear of the vampire, or pleased that he had come to see her, definitely surprised to find he'd entered her space without her being aware of it.

He waited for her to sink into a chair opposite him, waited for her to be the first to speak. They shared a long moment of silence, while she searched for the right thing to say. She finally went with simplicity. "Josef," she said, with no trace of emotion in her voice. "Why are you here?"

He shrugged. "Your phone is off, babe. I'm told you're not answering emails or im's. The day watch says there's no evidence of movement, and the night guys could only tell me you were here because they heard your heartbeat. I was getting—concerned."

She knew the surveillance was to protect her, she knew it was evidence that she was still valued. Nevertheless, the idea of it, the invasiveness of it, made her want to strike out at someone. Invasiveness was about the last thing she needed right now. What had been done to her body was bad enough, but this was getting into her head. Far worse. Even so, Josef seemed like the wrong target. He had left her no doubts that his intentions were, if not what was generally accepted as good, at least in her best interests. "I don't know what to say. I didn't mean to worry anyone. I just wanted—" the tears were rising again. "Oh, damn, I don't want to keep breaking down, Josef." She paused and took a deep breath. "I just wanted some time to heal, some time to be alone."

Josef looked away, and she realized he still felt responsible, still felt guilty, for what had happened. He spoke softly. "I think you may be entitled to a few tears, Lucky."

They sat in silence, for a while, lost in separate thoughts and unspoken words. Once Lucky had had a chance to settle herself, she found she was taking a strange sort of comfort in Josef's presence. It was restful, sitting across from him, and she felt utterly safe. That seemed odd, because always before, when they'd been together, it had been about excitement, and blood, and the pleasure and pain of his attention. Being with him was like handling a straight-edge razor. If you were careful, it was all right, it was fabulous, but the slightest slip could lead to…consequences, from a careless nick to a sliced open heart.

She'd had more than one cut from that blade, and she remembered each of their encounters with some residual heat. They stood out like individual drops of blood strung along the skin of her arm. That surprised her. After her experiences with Lunos, she'd have thought she could never consider the idea of a vampire's kiss again without abject fear. She took out her memories of Josef, and of Mick, ran through the images in her mind and found that her recollections of them were all good. Mick was always considerate when he fed, as gentle as possible. And Josef. Josef could make every encounter into something intimate, something to be sought out and enjoyed again. Perhaps it was the centuries of experience, perhaps it was the way he focused his attention on whatever woman he chose, but he was irresistible. She stole a glance up at him, and blushed to discover he was staring at her, listening intently. She realized once again that he knew the blood pulsing through her as he knew his own. It was his own. The reality of their blood bond—she'd never given it much thought before; the vampires usually didn't stress that too much with freshies, especially non-exclusive ones, but everyone knew there was something there. Once they'd fed from you, once they'd tasted you, they knew you, knew how you worked, knew how you thought. She knew, here and now, there was something there. And she knew he knew it too. She bit her lip, embarrassed.

Josef cleared his throat. "As pleasant as this is, my dear, I did have some object in coming here," he said. Lucky looked up, startled. Surely he didn't expect to feed on her—not now, not so soon. He went on, "I wanted to ask you if you could stand a little company. Mick had instructed the rest of the girls not to bother you—it did seem obvious you wished to be alone—but I think the time has come for you to let us take care of you."

"It's really not necessary, Josef. Really."

Josef shook his head and chuckled. "Knew you'd say that, Lucky. It's not optional. Not this time. I'm not sure who's coming. But a couple of Mick's girls will be here. Today. And you're going to let them in. Clear?"

Lucky nodded. "All right, Josef." If her voice was a little wobbly, he ignored it. Rising, Josef came to stand before her. It was difficult for her to read what was in his eyes, and his face was serious. He inhaled, carefully, taking in her scent. Then he reached out and laid his smooth hand against her cheek, gently, before he turned and left.


	2. Chapter 2

Exclusivity

This work of fiction is rated R for violence, language, and adult situations (if not in this chapter, in others). You've been warned.

Disclaimer:  
The characters from Moonlight are copyrighted by CBS, and no infringement is intended.

This work follows the events of "Within the Empty Reaches of the Night," and you might want to read that one first, if you haven't. Yes, it's another Freshie Fic.

Exclusivity

Ch. 2

Lucky hesitated at the door, hanging back while Faction punched in the door code. She wasn't sure she was ready to come back to Mick's place, but her friends had insisted.

"Look, just show up, drink a cup of coffee. It's not healthy to hide in your apartment. And everyone's been asking after you. Even the doctor said you ought to get out a little," Faction was relentless, and Lucky found herself wondering again about the doctor who took care of the freshies. What he'd told her was that if young people would insist on living as freshies, they needed to look out for themselves well. Of course, it seemed pretty clear that he was paid an enormous retainer to see that the freshies in this particular circle were healthy.

"Do you think—the boys—" She didn't even really know what she was trying to ask, whether she wanted to see them, or wanted not to. She especially wasn't sure about seeing Mick. She hadn't talked to him, not since that first visit, when she'd had to endure the humiliation of having the vamps inspect the wound she'd received at the fangs of her assailant. At least they hadn't suggested trying to heal the wound; she could not have stood that, the thought of a fanged mouth there. She couldn't have stood it. Josef, as always, Josef was a slightly different matter. He'd been by to see her three times in the past week, and put aside his usual snarky sarcasm for surprisingly civil and thoughtful conversation. Lucky loved listening to him; when he got out from behind the wall of attitude he'd built, he was fascinating. Wise, well-read, and articulate. She thought he was even a little taken unawares himself, to enjoy spending such—normal—face time with a freshie. She'd never known he could be like that, and she suspected even he hadn't realized it.

She hadn't mentioned any of that to any of the other freshies. It was hard to imagine the reactions of any of them if she told them that through this ordeal Josef had been her rock, had been the star that was lighting her way back from darkness. She actually wondered if he knew it himself.

It was time, though. Lucky took a deep breath and walked in. Five or six voices greeted her immediately, and she found herself on the receiving end of a hug from Sparrow that nearly knocked her over. After that, someone put a cup of coffee in her hand, and she found herself in her familiar seat by the bookcase. And the slight awkwardness passed, as the bright flow of the usual chatter resumed. Lucky felt no great need to join in the talk, but nonetheless she felt included, felt safe and at peace again. She was among friends. More than she'd have thought possible, she felt like she'd come home.

About a week later, she'd never have thought about doubting the wisdom of spending time at the Fortress of Style. She hadn't seen much of either of the vamps around, although Josef had stayed in close touch with her outside of Mick's place, and via cell phone. If she didn't know better, she'd think he was getting fond of her, that he was starting to expect to talk to her frequently. Nonsense, of course, she knew that. Even if he hadn't been a vampire, he was important, powerful, way out of her league. And when you added in the other part…she knew he just felt guilty about the attack. He was being inexplicably nice to her, but it didn't mean anything. And it wasn't long before she thought she saw the proof of that.

One evening at Mick's place, the night's complement of girls had just finished watching a movie when the door's electronic lock beeped, and Josef came strolling in with a stunningly beautiful blonde on his arm.

"Evening, ladies," he smirked, "Papa Bear's here."

Lucky and Allara exchanged a look. They'd never seen this girl before. She was expensively dressed, perfectly coiffed and made up, and dripping expensive jewelry. She had a vaguely dissatisfied look on her face, as though she were less than happy to be there.

"I thought we were going back to your house, Josef," she said with a charming little pout.

Josef unbuttoned his suit coat and seated himself on the couch, and the newcomer sat next to him, but not snuggled in the way most freshies would. Josef caught Lucky's eye—Allara was studiously looking the other direction. "Lucky, would you mind scaring up a couple of drinks? Scotch for me—Julian, what are you drinking tonight?"

Julian smiled at Josef. They would find quickly that she saved most of her smiles for Josef, and all of whatever limited charm she possessed. "Bourbon, neat," she said. "Josef, you were right, Mick really has a fantastic decorator."

"Yeah, well, with this crew he redecorates about once a week."

Lucky brought over the drinks. "Good to see you, Josef. Julian, it's nice to meet you. I'm Lucky."

"Thanks, doll," Josef replied, but his eyes were busy devouring his new find. Julian chose not to respond to Lucky, and if Josef noticed, he didn't comment.

Over the next week or so they saw little of Josef, and less of Julian. Gradually, they learned she was indeed exclusive to Josef, and that they one and all despised her. Josef did encourage her to hang out Mick's place from time to time, but every time she set foot there without him, it was clear that she came reluctantly, feeling it beneath her interest to talk with lowly non-exclusives. Even with Andromeda and Susie, who were exclusive to Mick, she seemed standoffish. And she certainly never pitched in to wash a coffee cup, or brought treats. She'd come in, exchange a few words with Andromeda, usually, drink a cup of coffee, and decide it was time for her manicure, or that she needed to go shopping for a new outfit to wear to whatever expensive restaurant Josef was taking her to that evening. Usually, she managed to announce that Josef had given her a credit card, and carte blanche to spend whatever she wanted. "Because I understand he likes to be seen with a truly stylish woman on his arm."

Lucky agreed with Faction and Allara that Julian was bad news, and that Josef needed to open his eyes. Even Andromeda and Susie thought she was not a good addition to the regular crew. "We've always been friends here. Like sisters," Susie said one afternoon when Julian had swept out with another flash of Josef's credit card. "but that one—she's trouble."


	3. Chapter 3

"I've got something for you, Lucky

This work of fiction is rated R for violence, language, and adult situations (if not in this chapter, in others). You've been warned.

Disclaimer:  
The characters from Moonlight are copyrighted by CBS, and no infringement is intended.

This work follows the events of "Within the Empty Reaches of the Night," and you might want to read that one first, if you haven't. Yes, it's another Freshie Fic.

Exclusivity

Chapter 3

Lucky was surprised to see Josef at her door. It was early evening, and she knew, from what Julian had said earlier in the afternoon, that Josef had plans with her this evening. But here he was. She invited him in, and he came to the point without preamble.

"I've got something for you, Lucky." Josef reached into the breast pocket of his impeccably tailored suit and withdrew a small, flat box. "Wear it in good health," he said with a wolfish grin that suddenly made his boyish face look far older, far more predatory.

Lucky shivered at that look, even knowing it wasn't directed at her, but she took the little jewel box. Inside it was a pendant, something gleaming white mounted in gold. A vampire's fang. Lucky breathed in carefully, fighting a sudden wave of nausea, and an urge to throw the awful thing as far away from her as possible. She raised fearful, questioning eyes to Josef's face.

"We caught up with Lunos," Josef said simply.

Lucky closed her eyes, clutching the box in shaking hands. She didn't know how to react, whether to smile, cry, or break down into hysterics. She ended by swallowing hard. "He's dead?" she whispered.

Josef sat down beside her. "Trust me, babe. He's dead. And if it helps any, he suffered. In fact, at one point he said to tell you he was very, very sorry he hurt you."

Lucky buried her face in her hands, and began to weep, perhaps from relief. The next thing she knew, she was in Josef's arms, her face pressed against the smooth wool of his jacket, and he was making oddly uncharacteristic comforting noises. That in itself shocked her. She pushed away, and if she thought there was any reluctance in him to let her go, it was more mental than physical. When they were very close, she sometimes thought she could feel the pull of his mind on hers, but maybe she just imagined that.

"You really want me to wear this?" she asked. "Against my skin?" The thought repulsed her. That he would expect her to wear the very thing that had caused her so much pain…

Josef closed his eyes, as if picturing something he wasn't going to share with her. He huffed out a sharp breath. He took the box from her hand, opened it, and pulled out the shining piece of bone, dangling it by the long chain. He slipped it over her head, and it fell at once into the neckline of her blouse, between her breasts. "Think of it as a talisman, Lucky. You wear that, and no vamp will touch you wrong again. I personally guarantee it."

A few days later, Lucky was sitting at the FoS, reading quietly. She was wondering if she was ever going to get a chance to talk to Mick again. Somehow, he just hadn't been around much of late, or at least not when she was there. Ever since she'd come back, in fact, he'd always seemed to be out, or asleep, or wrapped up working in his office. Ah, well, she thought, he's got more on his mind than a bunch of silly freshies. Still, she wanted to talk to him.

He'd had a lot to do with whatever had happened to Lunos, she thought. She'd worn the necklace, in fact had not dared to take if off since Josef had placed the chain around her neck. It wasn't that she was afraid to remove it, exactly, but more that every time the chain shifted, or she felt the pendant against her skin, she was reminded of Josef and the look in his eyes as he'd hung it there, she was reminded of what they must have done to get it. While she was sensible of the fact that her role in the conflict between the vampires was small, that she'd been a pawn in a larger game, she was fairly sure that had Lunos not attempted to kill her, and in the obscene way that he'd chosen to try, Josef's vengeance would have perhaps been somewhat less spectacularly—messy.

She was still pondering this when the door opened and Mick walked in, handsome as always in his dark coat with the collar turned up. She'd always wondered about that—was it just comfortable that way, or did he know how well it framed his face? In any event, on this particular occasion, he smiled warmly at the greetings from his freshies. Then he sniffed, and a shadow seemed to pass over his face. He turned his head sharply, and looked straight at Lucky. Then he was standing in front of her. He extended a hand to help her up, all traces of the smile gone. "We need to talk," he said as she rose. "My office, I think."

After the door closed behind them, Mick silently came to stand directly in front of Lucky, looking down at her with troubled eyes. He lifted one hand to her throat, and delicately slid a finger inside her neckline to capture the chain of her necklace, gently pulling it into view, bringing the pendant into sight. Seeing the gold-chased, gleaming fang, he made a sharp intake of breath. "Son of a bitch," he said. "He did it. He really did it." With the fang against his palm, Mick was suddenly back at the scene, standing over the ruined body that still quivered and struggled against its bonds.

"_Joz'ef," Mick said, "it's enough. We need to kill him, and get it over." Now that his own lust for blood and justice had been slaked, he was sickened at what they had done. _

_His eyes still silver, his brain still in the grip of his fury, Josef had snarled back through his fangs, "Not quite. One more thing I need to do, Mick, then we can end him."_

"_He's dying already. What more can you do?"_

_Josef growled. "I promised myself I'd give Lucky one of this bastard's fangs for a necklace. That I'd rip it out of his undead skull."_

_Mick would carry the sound of Lunos' scream with him forever._

He shook his head a little, coming back to the present. He dropped the fang and turned away, not noticing as Lucky put it out of sight again.

"Mick?" Lucky was always shy at speaking to him. No matter what the others said, he always seemed a little unapproachable to her. He turned back to her, and although his eyes were kind, she sensed too much pity in them. "Josef told me to wear—that thing. I—I didn't plan on anyone else knowing about it."

Mick took in a long slow breath, and nodded. "I think that's probably a good idea. I don't know why he'd want to saddle you with it in the first place."

"He told me it was to help keep me safe. Like a talisman."

Mick raised his hand, as though to caress her cheek, then stopped and dropped his hand back to his side. "We do want you to be safe. Trust Joz'ef to find his own way of achieving that."

Lucky saw his gesture, or lack of one, and it devastated her. She knew he was trying to be kind, trying to respect her feelings—but for him to avoid touching her—it made her feel dirty, like she was unworthy of his attention. She suddenly realized that to Josef, to Josef, the whole incident had made him more aware of her as a person, as more than just another willing freshie in a crowd of them. She was going to have to think about this, and think about it very hard.


	4. Chapter 4

Exclusivity

This work of fiction is rated R for violence, language, and adult situations (if not in this chapter, in others). You've been warned.

Disclaimer:  
The characters from Moonlight are copyrighted by CBS, and no infringement is intended.

This work follows the events of "Within the Empty Reaches of the Night," and you might want to read that one first, if you haven't. Yes, it's another Freshie Fic.

**Exclusivity**

**Chapter 4**

Looking back, Lucky could never remember whose idea it was to go clubbing that night. At the time, she'd been more than half convinced it was Andromeda's urging, but she had no real reason to believe it. Lucky and Susie weren't all that big on clubbing, and FG never made suggestions like that. She honestly didn't remember any of the others speaking up until after the idea had been floated. So maybe it had been Julian's idea after all. Somehow that seemed more likely. Whoever had the initial idea, everyone at the Fortress of Style took it up as a great idea. Everyone wanted to get out, to forget about their troubles, to see a little color and a few bright lights. Besides, at least Julian immediately got on the phone, and wheedled Josef into coming over and picking them up. Lucky had to see that as a positive. Lately, Josef had been largely absent from Mick's place. As far as Lucky knew, he'd spent every evening with Julian. She'd certainly intimated as much, dragging in to the FoS in the afternoons looking both drained and satiated, and endearing herself to everyone with her arch insinuations about her close relationship with the vampire. Lucky hadn't had so much as a telephone call for days, just when she'd thought they were growing closer. She kept reminding herself, "I'm just another freshie." It wasn't a terribly comforting thought.

The freshies scattered to the four winds, rushing home to dress for the clubs. Both of the L. A. freshie bars maintained high standards, and though it was unlikely that either would turn down Josef's or Mick's freshies regardless of what they were wearing, everyone wanted to do their vamps justice.

"Trot out your best bling, ladies" Josef told them, arriving at the FoS to oversee final preparations for the outing. "When I walk in, the place shines."

And before she left, he caught her eye, questioning. In response, she put a hand to her neck, and pulled the chain that held Lunos' fang very slightly into sight. She knew Josef could see it, would recognize it and know that she was complying with his wishes that she wear it. She had no idea what the reaction would be at the clubs. Not that she had intentions of going near any strange vamps. Even if she wasn't exclusive to either Mick or Josef, she did trust them to look out for her. They'd proven that they would, and she had no reason to expect anything so safe from a stranger. She was quite happy to be one of the coterie of freshies in company of two such respected vamps. Let others be the favored ones. If Josef was most happy in the company of someone like Julian, or most desirous of showing her off around town, well, she knew that he was not disinterested in her.

She had watched with interest as Allara and Julian circled each other warily, engaging in verbal battles and not-so-subtle ploys for Josef's attention. Julian had the glitter of novelty, and the polish of a wealthy upbringing, but Lucky was convinced that she had nothing on Allara when it came to brains—street smarts especially. And among the other freshies, despite her occasional flashes of temper, Allara was well liked, which Julian would never be. That gave her some advantages. In addition, Lucky could see that Allara was genuinely fond of Josef, genuinely cared about looking out for his welfare. Julian was so self-absorbed, she could have been on any vamp's arm, and it would've made no difference to her. Lucky only hoped Josef was smart enough, after all his long years, to see who really cared.

At last, Josef and Mick ushered their flock of freshies into two limos for the trip to the club. There had been some discussion as to whether the action would be more interesting at Pulse! or Club Valis, but when Julian had pouted prettily at Josef, hanging on his arm, he'd laughed down at her and said, "Valis it is, doll. We can always move on to Pulse! later, girls."

Lucky had to admit, it was rather a thrill to pull up in front of an exclusive club in a stretch limo and be handed out by an obsequious doorman. No standing in line, no waiting to be admitted. She'd come to Club Valis once, and Pulse! a few times when she was first exploring the lifestyle, wanting to become a freshie for real. Then, she'd envied the girls arriving with vamps, studied them carefully to see if there was anything she could learn from watching them in a club crowd. They were all so different, it seemed hopeless. Tonight, it was the others watching her, watching all of them. She could see the curiosity in some faces, wondering if it was true, if the vampires were really what they were rumored to be, or if it was all some elaborate fantasy. Others, the ones on the outskirts, had the look of the once-bitten. She could tell from the way they looked at Josef and Mick, surreptitiously lifting a hand to throat, or absently feeling a forearm, remembering the feel of, as Josef always said, fang on flesh. But if that were true, and they were still outside the club, then they probably wouldn't be admitted again. There were plenty of would-be freshies, and not all of them were found acceptable by the vamps. They had alternatives, and Lucky put that out of her mind, firmly. She didn't want to think about it tonight.

Mick was displaying his darkly scruffy leather-jacketed charm for all the wannabes, and had gathered his favorites close. Andromeda and Susie were by his side, just as Julian and Allara had taken their places by Josef, himself looking debonair in a black velvet jacket. Lucky, Faction, Moonshadow, Sparrow, DarkRavyn, and the others had ranged themselves as near to the boys as possible, throwing off what Lucky thought was an astonishing glare of massed beauty and shine. Even inside the club, heads turned instantly when they entered, and a club flunky rushed to escort them to the VIP room, finding them spacious booths. Lucky noticed that her friends at Mick's booth had stopped just long enough to drop off their purses before rushing off to hit the dance floor. Josef, however indicated with a gesture to those at his table that they should stay.

"A drink first, ladies," he said. "Let's get you in the proper frame of mind for dancing."

A waitress appeared almost at once, bearing a tray covered with glasses of varying shapes and sizes. She deferentially set a large Scotch in front of Josef first, then deposited her tray on the table for the women to take their choices. Lucky, who had not happened to be a part of this particular ritual before, noticed at once that Josef made no move to pick up his drink, and that Allara, Julian and one or two others were suddenly fumbling at their bags, pulling out small lancets. Allara, deftly pricking her finger with the lancet, squeezed a little drop of blood into the Scotch, then picked up Josef's drink and passed it on. Each of them contributed, while Josef looked on with a sort of benevolent avidity. When the drink returned to him, he sipped it delicately.

"There is nothing on this earth," he said, "to equal private reserve." And with that, everyone else drank, and soon they were drifting off to the dance floor, feeling somehow more cherished for the ritual.

It seemed that the next few hours passed in a haze for Lucky. She danced several times, both with her sister freshies, and with random strangers. She always seemed to have a feeling of being under the eye of one or the other of the vamps, and she was glad of it. She had no idea how many other vamps might be cruising the club tonight, looking for fresh blood. She knew that drill, and she was glad to be out of it. Even before Josef had given her "Lucky" as a freshie name, she knew she'd been fortunate to fall in with Mick's group. Dancing, drinking, more dancing. Laughing with her friends, time was passing very pleasantly. At some point, Mick and his freshies decided to see what was going on at Pulse! and took their leave, but with the rest scattered around the dance floor, Josef said he was happy to stay in one place. No one had even seen Julian for ages.

At one point, Lucky had come back to the table, discovering Josef sitting by himself, which was very unusual, until she noticed that Faction had fallen into a dreamy doze next to him, and was lying down with her head pillowed on Josef's thigh. "Lucky, come sit by me, doll," he smiled, then looked down at the sleeping girl, shaking his head good-humoredly. "I can't believe she could drop off in this racket."

"You don't like the music?" Lucky asked, sliding in next to him.

"String quartets are more my speed. But, hey, you move with the times."

"I guess you'd know, J'."

He laughed at that, and they chatted as best they could in the noise of the club for several minutes. She carefully didn't mention that he had barely spoken to her for some time, and he acted as though there had been no interruption in their ongoing conversation. She supposed that in a 400 plus year long life, a week or two hardly counted as a blink. Even so, she knew he was not giving her his full attention, and he hardly seemed surprised when Moonshadow rushed up, trouble plain in her dark eyes.

"Josef," she said, "I think Allara needs you."

He nodded, and Lucky slid out of the booth to let him pass. As he stood, Josef put his arm around her. "Lucky, if you'd be kind enough to accompany me?"

They found Allara looking a bit nervous, which was highly unusual, backed into a corner by a strange vamp. He was tall and slender, and his lank dark hair fell over one eye in what he doubtless thought was very vamp cool. Josef put on his most venomous grin.

"Allara," he said. "I've been looking for you." She bit her lip, and slid out under the stranger's arm.

"Josef—" she started, her eyes stormy.

"Take off, Turbo. I'll deal with this." Josef waited until Allara was well away, then stepped closer to the stranger, and drew Lucky with him. "I'm guessing, friend, that the lady informed you she was taken."

The stranger snarled at him, showing more than a glint of fang. "Dancing by herself—here? That doesn't look taken to me."

"Trust me, if she says she's spoken for, she's spoken for." Josef sighed. It was obvious this bozo had no idea who he was, and was not going to either show the proper respect or back down. "Look, asshole, let me show you something." He raised his free hand to Lucky's neck, and slipped a finger under her necklace chain, lifting the fang into view. The stranger went suddenly very still, his eyes fixed on the shining pendant.

"Is that—" he said.

"The last vamp who messed with one of my freshies," Josef replied flatly. "He regretted his foolishness." He didn't wait for a response, but turned to walk away, muttering down to Lucky, "What a dipshit."

Lucky giggled, but Josef's attention was already elsewhere. He lifted his head and surveyed the room, and she could see his nostrils flare, searching for scent. "Where's Julian gotten to?" he asked absently. Suddenly, his head snapped to one side, and he inhaled deeply. "Lucky, go get the others. We'll be leaving immediately." He released her, and she went at once to comply.

When they climbed back into the limo, two things became obvious, and neither was mentioned. For one, Julian was no longer in the party, and for another, Josef was quietly, coldly enraged.


	5. Chapter 5

Exclusivity

This work of fiction is rated R for violence, language, and adult situations (if not in this chapter, in others). You've been warned.

Disclaimer:  
The characters from Moonlight are copyrighted by CBS, and no infringement is intended.

This work follows the events of "Within the Empty Reaches of the Night," and you might want to read that one first, if you haven't. Yes, it's another Freshie Fic.

Exclusivity

Chapter 5

Lucky had passed such a restless night she was almost glad to be awakened by the sound of her phone. The sight of Josef so angry had frightened her. She wasn't sure what Julian had done, but it seemed clear she was the cause of Josef's displeasure. All night Lucky's dreams had been haunted by the cold face of the vampire.

Lucky had been afraid of the monsters, even as a small child. Especially as a small child, she had known the monsters—the vampires—were going to get her. She feared sleeping with the closet door open, because she knew what was lurking within. Now, she knew the vampires were real, and somehow the knowledge had made her feel safer. She had to smile at the thought of Mick, always so gentle with women and children, or urbane Josef, the consummate businessman, hiding in a closet to frighten a child. It simply was not in their nature. She supposed she was doing what any sensible creature would do—as a smaller, weaker part of the herd, she was attaching herself to the biggest, baddest predator she could find, in hopes of gaining some protection. Maybe. Maybe she was just putting herself out as the next sacrifice.

At any rate, when she grabbed for her phone, blinking the grit of sleep from her eyes, it turned out to be a wrong number. Still, after a moment's thought, she decided she'd better get over to the FoS. If, as seemed obvious, Julian had been caught in the arms of another vamp, all the freshies might be needed to try and avert violence. She showered, dressed, and made up in record time.

Thank goodness, there was always coffee on at Mick's place. She reflected wryly it was a good thing he liked the aroma. She was daily amazed he hadn't tossed the whole kit and caboodle of them out long since, with all the noise and drama. After getting a mug of coffee, she smiled greetings to Moonshadow and Faction, taking up her usual seat by the bookcase. She found the bookcase comforting. The leather chair there was like being enfolded in a warm embrace, and she always felt calmest near books. Mick had accumulated a nice collection. He told her he'd gotten rid of far more books than he'd kept, and after almost 60 years as a vampire, she didn't doubt that he'd spent his share of long nights reading. Lucky picked out a book and began to browse through it, not knowing exactly what she was waiting for, but waiting nonetheless. She thought she sensed the same wariness in Faction and Moonshadow. None of the other freshies were in evidence this morning, and she wondered where Sparrow had gotten to. The little bird flew to her own song, and no one ever knew when she'd alight at the FoS. Andromeda and Susie also seemed to have made themselves scarce, which surprised her. It wasn't like either of them to be absent when there was potential drama in the air.

They were each immersed in their own activities, Moonshadow on the staircase scratching away in her ever-present notebook, Lucky with her book, and Faction busy on her laptop. Once Faction's phone rang, with a text from Allara.

"Alla' wants us to let her know when—if—Julian turns up here. Josef wants to speak to her, but he won't call her. He was ranting to Allara all night, she told me earlier."

"I'd think he'd just have Alla' call her and tell her to come to his office," Moonshadow commented, then shrugged. "I guess that's just Josef for you."

"It's hard to figure him sometimes," Lucky agreed. She was thinking that he probably didn't want Julian anywhere near any of his places at this point. But who knew?

Faction grimaced. "I guess we just wait."

Time passed. The room stayed very quiet.

Then Julian arrived.

She was dressed with her usual style, in an elegant white dress, subtly accented with gold jewelry. Lucky smiled inwardly, thinking she looked like an innocent, virginal bride. If the long sleeves and high neckline were a little different from the usual freshie mode, they suited her, accentuating Julian's perfect tan and blonde beauty. "Morning all," she said breezily, depositing a bakery box on the kitchen island. "I brought croissants. Lovely day out, isn't it?"

Moonshadow smiled back, but it was forced. "Yes, it is nice, Julian," she said. "Coffee's on, if you like."

"Umm, thanks."

Lucky cast a look over at Faction, but the other girl was busily texting, head down. Julian had never brought treats before, unlike, well, everyone else. She was being suspiciously friendly, in Lucky's opinion. Her suspicions were not much allayed when Susie and Andromeda floated down the stairs a few minutes later, both looking more cheerful than they usually did in the mornings. Looking like they expected trouble, in Lucky's opinion. Sparrow arrived a few moments later. Greetings were exchanged all around, and some lightly brittle conversation, but it wasn't long before Faction looked down at her phone, and over at Lucky, and nodded very slightly. Allara must've texted back, and Faction had been smart enough to set her ringer on silent.

Then the door opened, and Josef walked in, followed by Allara. Julian, who was standing near the fireplace, turned and flashed him her most brilliant smile. "Josef—" she started.

He cut her off with a gesture. "Did you think," he said, and his voice was hard enough to cut diamonds, "did you think I wouldn't know, Julian?"

Her smile faltered. "I don't understand, Josef."

"Roll up your sleeve," he said, crossing his arms.

"What?" Julian looked outraged; Lucky had to admit she was a good actress, great if she pulled this off.

"Roll up your sleeve." Josef was relentless, speaking quietly. Lucky thought screaming would be less frightening than this dead flat tone.

"Fine." Julian started to roll up her right sleeve, thrusting out an unmarked arm.

Josef shook his head. "The left one, Julian. Don't play these games with me."

Julian closed her eyes. "How—"

"I can smell him on you, you ignorant—" Josef mastered himself with an effort. "All those promises of devotion, forgotten." He snapped his fingers. "Like that." He smiled, and Lucky thought she had never seen a more poisonous expression.

Julian's façade was starting to crumble. She'd lost her smile, and somehow looked shorter, less confident, less like herself. "Josef, I can explain—"

In answer he snarled, and took a step forward. Everyone in the place came to their feet. Allara darted forward, trying to block Josef's progress, knowing it was completely hopeless. Andromeda was instantly in between them, and Susie with her. "Back off, Josef," Andromeda ordered. "No violence. And by God, if you disturb Mick's rest with this mess…" Julian had gone as white as her blouse.

Josef looked down at Allara, gallantly trying to hold him back, and his expression completely altered. "It's all right, Turbo," he said, gently. Then he looked up at Andromeda. "You mistake me," he said. "I have no intention of laying a hand on the fair Julian—ever again." He shifted his gaze to Julian. "I already talked with your little boyfriend. Apparently you neglected to tell him you were supposed to be an exclusive. He was—disappointed—to hear it. I suspect, my dear, you'll find no vamp is interested in a blatant oathbreaker. After all, it's not as though you were attacked. You made your choice. Now you can live with it. Alone."

Julian burst into tears, sinking to the floor. "You can't mean that—you can't," she wailed.

Josef shook his head, looking more saddened than angry. "I do, Julian, I do." His voice took on a more formal tone. "From this time forth, I will not touch you, I will not speak to you, I will not see you. You no longer exist to me." A chill enveloped the room, and Lucky felt sure she was not the only one to shiver at his words. Josef turned to leave, and Allara caught his arm. He smiled down at her again, tight-lipped. "Not now, Turbo," he said softly. "I need some time. I'll call you later." And with that, he walked out, leaving the room silent except for Julian's moans.

Sparrow knelt by her side, trying to comfort her, but not knowing what to say. It had all sounded so final, and Josef was known to be unforgiving when his anger was aroused.

Allara groped her way blindly to the couch, as unnerved as any of them, and collapsed on it. She dropped her face in her hands. "I thought he was going to kill her," she said. "I really thought he was going to kill her."

At that, Julian raised a face haggard with grief. "I wish he had," she grated out. "He might as well have." Sparrow kept her arms tight around Julian, and the pair rocked back and forth. Lucky could almost felt he waves of pain radiating from the woman—she'd started to think, the other freshie, but Julian wasn't a freshie anymore, and that realization was sinking in all around the room. Lucky felt her own heart constricting with the knowledge that it could all end so quickly for any of them. Between one heartbeat and the next, for a real or perceived fault, they could be dismissed. Julian was holding out her wrist, staring at the marks of the last vampire bite she would ever receive. The marks looked rough, red against her tanned skin, and Lucky felt her hand go unconsciously to her own wrist, to the ghosts of the precise marks where Josef had last fed from her. Perhaps Julian had sought a wilder passion, perhaps she had needed a less practiced bite to bring her the sensations she wanted. Whatever the reason, she had risked everything, and she had lost. She had nothing left. Nothing but the memories. When she was able to stand up, when had she pulled herself together enough to leave the pitying stares of the rest of the women around the room, she would have to walk out the door. And once that happened, as far as they were concerned, as far as the vamps were concerned, she would have fallen off the edge of the earth. She would cease to exist for them, and no one would even speak of her again. She looked at the bite marks on her arm, imagining she could feel them burn, along with the other fresh marks on her neck and thigh. It had all seemed so euphoric at the time. How could she have thought it worthwhile? She couldn't bear it, she simply could not endure it.

She staggered to her feet, throwing off Sparrow's steadying hand. "I need some air."

As Julian headed for the terrace, Andromeda looked around at the other freshies. "Someone ought to go with her."

Faction moved forward, walked out in Julian's wake. She was barely through the door when they heard running footsteps and a loud scream of "Julian, Julian—noooooooo!"

As they rushed through the door, Lucky first saw Faction, collapsed by the parapet like an unstrung puppet, staring blankly ahead. There was no one else on the terrace.

When Lucky gathered the courage to look down, far below she saw a still, white-clad figure, framed with angel wings etched in red, red blood.


	6. Chapter 6

Lucky didn't see or hear from Josef for a solid week after Julian's death

This work of fiction is rated R for violence, language, and adult situations (if not in this chapter, in others). You've been warned.

Disclaimer:  
The characters from Moonlight are copyrighted by CBS, and no infringement is intended.

This work follows the events of "Within the Empty Reaches of the Night," and you might want to read that one first, if you haven't. Yes, it's another Freshie Fic.

Exclusivity

Chapter 6

I.

Lucky didn't see or hear from Josef for a solid week after Julian's death. None of the freshies did, and no one quite had the courage to ask Mick about it. She hoped wherever Josef was, he was getting some nourishment, that he was coming to terms with what had happened. It could be nothing, he could simply be on a business trip, but somehow she thought not.

She found that she missed him, missed hearing his voice. And she began to wear a satin nightie every night, going to bed thinking of the touch of his hands, and the silken razor feel of his fangs sliding so easily through the veil of her skin, the soft insistent pull as he took the blood from her veins into his heart. Sometimes in the darkness, she almost thought she could feel the weight of his gaze upon her, the power of his regard. She whispered his name in the darkness, but silence was her only reply. And she ached with the wanting, and wept for it, for him.

So she wasn't sure whether to be surprised or not, when there was a knock on the door one night, and she answered to find Josef standing in the hallway, his suit a little rumpled, and his eyes shadowed with hunger.

"Hey, doll," he said, quirking his mouth into a smile that didn't reach his eyes. "Miss me?"

She stood back and held the door open for him. "Yes," she said.

A few moments later, she was sitting comfortably on his lap, her arms around his neck, his cool hand resting on the satin of her gown as it draped across her upper thigh. She shifted, and the material rode up just a bit, exposing the ugly scars left by Lunos' attack. When Josef's fingers encountered the roughness of them, he stiffened in her arms. "Damn," he said. "Lucky, we should have healed those wounds for you. These scars—they're an obscenity."

Lucky reached down and twitched the cloth over her scars. She shook her head. "I'm glad they're there."

"To remind me?" Josef said a little harshly. "How I failed you?"

She shook her head. "To remind me. Of everything you—and Mick, too, but mostly you—did for me afterwards."

He dropped his head to her shoulder for a long minute, but when he raised his head again, she could see the beginnings of a familiar gleam in his eye. "You know, Lucky, one of the problems with living so long is that you start to repeat yourself. Julian—Julian reminded me so much of someone. Someone I met a long time ago."

Lucky settled in, breathing slowly. Listening to him, feeling the vibration of his voice through his chest. "It was 1790. Marie was beautiful," he said. "Julian looked a lot like her, and Marie had that same 'screw everybody' attitude." He gave a short laugh. "I met her in London, back when it was a real party town. Good times, those. Go to a gambling hall for a little action, meet a French aristocrat. She escaped the Terror—got smuggled out of Paris in the bottom of a cart full of garbage. She said the smell alone nearly killed her, but she stood it, because the alternative—the alternative was stay behind, get caught, and meet Madame Guillotine. Up close and personal. And after all that—she died young. Some stupid accident. She was riding to the hounds." He looked away. "It's such a waste, sometimes, Lucky. Life, death, it's all such a goddamn waste." Then he looked her in the eye. "Help me forget about it, Lucky," he said, with a quiet note of desperation voice that was echoed by the look in his eyes. "Help me forget about all of it."

Lucky nodded, and silently pulled his unresisting head forward to her throat.

II.

After that, things seemed to fall into a pattern. Josef never mentioned Julian again, at least not in Lucky's hearing, nor did anyone else. It was as though she had never existed, never set foot in Mick's place, and certainly never left it as spectacularly as she did. Lucky wondered if it would have been the same had Julian simply stood up and walked out the door and out of their lives. Would anyone have kept in touch? Would anyone have ever recalled the events of her departure? Freshies, Lucky decided, were very much creatures of the present. Without much security for the future, it seemed they had reason not to dwell on the past, either.

Lucky continued to spend most of her free time at the FoS, even if Mick never seemed to look her direction. That was all right—it was still the best place to run into Josef, who came by at some point almost every night. And it wasn't just for him. Lucky was developing fast friendships with Allara and Faction. That seemed odd on the face of it; they were both great admirers of Josef, and she often ended up as a silent witness to him feeding on one or the other of them. She would have thought there would be a rivalry between the three of them, or jealousy, but somehow an understanding sprang up instead. Maybe it was just that a vampire needed more blood than one freshie could supply. Maybe it was that they all understood the difference between being a freshie and being a lover. Or maybe, she sometimes thought wryly, Josef just had them all charmed into blind acquiescence. Certainly, when he gave her his attention, Lucky never thought of anything except him. He had a knack of making the whole world narrow down to just the two of them, and she assumed it was the same for the others.

Then other events shattered the peaceful round of her days. The tension had been growing for some time, both between Josef and one of Mick's freshies, Susie, for reasons Lucky had no way of understanding, and between the freshies themselves. She did understand that. It really all boiled down to competition for the attention of the vampires, in Lucky's opinion. Tension she could live with, competition was even all right, but the night it all came together and ended with the frightening spectacle of Josef losing control—under provocation, granted, but nonetheless losing control—and seriously injuring one of Mick's freshies while everyone else present suicidally tried to keep it from turning tragic. While Lucky was very fond of the freshie who was injured, it came to her eventually that she was more concerned to keep Josef from doing something he would regret forever. He had become that important, somewhere along the way.

III.

It would seem that a decision of sorts had crept up on her. After some of the things she'd seen lately, some of the trauma, maybe it was a strange decision, maybe it was a bad one. She pulled Lunos's fang on its long chain out of her neckline, and clutched it in her hand. The pressure of its point against her palm was like a crystallization of everything that had happened. She thought about Julian, thought about her tragic choices. And that circus at Mick's apartment the other night, when Susie had come so close to dying. When Lucky thought about that, about herself getting right up in Josef's face when he was so out of control, she literally felt faint. He'd been a hairsbreadth away from attacking her as he had Susie. Where she had gotten either the courage or the trust to do such a thing, she would never know. It seemed to have come from somewhere deep inside. She'd never wanted to get emotionally involved, never expected to regard either of these vampires as more than a physical experience. She hadn't counted on Mick's essential decency and humanity, or on Josef's dangerous charm, his mercurial moods, the allure of his hidden vulnerability.

Somehow, somehow it was a turning point. She realized that she could no longer bear the thought of feeding any other vampire. It had to be Josef, or no one. She knew it was unorthodox, but she had made a decision. If Josef accepted it, fine. If not, it was still the same decision. She had to talk to Mick, first, and let him know in the nicest way she could that she would no longer feed him. She didn't really expect he'd mind—he had Andromeda, and all those others. The way things had been—or really, not been—between them lately, she didn't think he'd even be surprised. Usually, it was the vampire who asked a freshie to go exclusive, but her mind was made up. She was going to tell Josef she was exclusive to him, if he wanted her. She didn't expect any special treatment, she would simply continue to be around, and if he needed her, if he wanted her, she would be there. If he didn't like that idea, then she was going to walk away. Unlike Julian, she knew she could walk away. Maybe she would do some looking back along the way, but that was all right. She would have memories, and she would make herself a new life, if she needed to.

He was not her lover, he would never be her lover. But he was her vampire, and that was enough.


End file.
